The Virginian-Pilot
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Amtrak passenger trains from Norfolk's Harbor Park to Richmond and beyond will begin rolling nearly a year earlier than planned, by Dec. 31, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Wednesday.
Service wasn't expected to start until October 2013, but work to prepare Norfolk Southern and CSX tracks for passenger rail has progressed faster than expected, said Thelma Drake, Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation director.
"We're excited about it and want people to know about it," Drake said, adding that she's often quizzed by skeptical residents about whether the service will actually launch.
The state is spending $101 million to upgrade the freight corridors between Norfolk and Petersburg and Richmond.
Service will start with one train departing and one arriving daily. The morning departure is set for around 5 a.m., with service to Richmond's Staples Mill station by 7 a.m., and on to Washington by 9 a.m. A train will depart Washington around 3 p.m., arriving in Norfolk by 7 p.m. Officials designed the schedule to be attractive to military and business officials who make day trips to the capital area.
The one-seat service will carry riders all the way to Boston. Officials plan to increase service to three round-trips daily. It will be the first intercity passenger rail service in Norfolk since 1977.
"This service will provide immediate relief to road weary travelers between two of the state's most congested regions," McDonnell said in a news release. "This service is long overdue and I congratulate our partners and commend their cooperation in moving up the scheduled start date."
The accelerated schedule, however, means that passengers might have to use a temporary kiosk or trailer for ticketing while the city builds a $3 million, 4,000-square-foot train station.
John Keifer, public works director, said the station has been designed and the city is poised to advertise for bids in the next couple months with construction starting in the spring.
"The objective is to get it done by the time the trains start operating, but I don't know if we'll have it done by then or not," he said.
Drake said completing the station will not delay the train's startup.
While there's no money to cover operating expenses now, McDonnell's proposed budget includes more than $25 million over two years for Virginia's state-sponsored rail routes. The money will support the upcoming Norfolk train as well as service to Washington from Richmond and from Lynchburg.
Drake, however, is confident that the popularity of the Norfolk trains will rival the Lynchburg service, which sells enough tickets to avoid tapping the state subsidy.
"Amtrak expects it to be very well used and that it should pay its operating costs," she said.
About 44,000 residents from South Hampton Roads travel to Newport News each year to catch a train. Amtrak's early estimates show about 67,000 customers will to use the Norfolk service annually, or close to 200 daily passengers.
Drake said Amtrak has not set prices and is working on a passenger-and-revenue analysis. However, Norfolk officials have said a one-way ticket to Washington will cost $50 to $60.
Amtrak service from Newport News to Washington generally costs $33 to $46, and the trip time is four to four and a half hours.
Debbie Messina, 757-446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com
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Real Estate Development Graduate Student
I recently started graduate school. I major in Construction Management with a concentration in Real Estate Develpment. I have a project that's due in March. I'm trying to figure out what does a land zoned RT2 means; exactly what can I build on this lot (not actually really do it it's just for school purposes) I saw a sight near the beach zoned this. Please anyone help.
Development options
Yes, RT-2 is a resort tourist district at the Beach, generally the area between Atlantic and Pacific Avenues from 1st street to 40th street. This area is unique in that it has very different parking requirements, basically because it serves the needs of tourists who have mostly arrived by car, and so parking is already provided at their hotel/motel. This allows very dense development, often with no setbacks, and a wide variety of tourism relates uses. This district is slated to change with a new Form Based Code that will change all the RT districts (1, 2, and 3) and which will reduce parking, increase density, and relate uses to particular streets, allowing greater heights and reduced setbacks in return for design enhancements.
I remember the good old days
I remember the good old days when a person could get a round trip airline ticket from Washington National (now Reagan) to Patrick Henry for about $35. The trip took less than an hour. Now you can't fly between Newport News and Washington at all.
Congratulations
A few months ago, V.B. Vision and the Hampton Roads Association of Commercial Real Estate sponsored a talk by Tom Clark, Executive Vice President of Metro Denver, their regional economic development agency, who extolled the light rail and passenger rail role in the revitalization of their economy in Denver. They have had over $6,000,000,000 in development and redevelopment that they have attributed to light rail and passenger rail, across a wide spectrum of uses from offices, retail, educational, institutional, medical, and residential. His most memorable quote; "we try never to miss the opportunity presented to us by recession." That is, they plan and then implement. Norfolk, congratulations for your insight and leadership.
You guys probably paid him
You guys probably paid him to say what you wanted to hear.
Keith, whether they paid for that talk or not,
one thing that is clear is that light rail has cost Denver Millions less than its buses have cost. And one doesn't even need to pay anyone for that info, just need a calculator or a spreadsheet and the free reports from the National Transit Database.
From 1996 through 2010, despite the huge capital expenses within the last few years of Denver's Fast Tracks program that is more than doubling their light rail system, Denver has spent more than $900 Million more on buses than on light rail; $3,907,981,916 on buses and $2,985,662,245 on light rail.
Unlike the more subjective transit orientated development numbers, the above represents a huge saving of taxpayer dollars.
But you keep forgetting
But you keep forgetting Alan. We don't live in Denver. And no one here in Tidewater Virginia cares what it costs for anything in Denver. It's irrelevant. What may work in Denver doesn't necessarily work everywhere else. It's the same game that these folks who want feed from the taxpayer trough. If they jump off a cliff, then that means we should too. No thanks.
And you keep forgetting that
And you keep forgetting that Norfolk isn't some third world country. It works in Denver, Phoenix, LA, San Fran, St. Louis, Charlotte, even Salt Lake City which is of comparable population to the Tidewater. It's not just one city's shining example that we're discussing. City after city around this country is saving money by building and using light rail instead of relying solely on the more expensive buses.
And you've already jumped off the cliff if you drive a car. Because if you drive a car, then you too are accepting taxpayer subsidies to drive. On average we drivers only cover 51% of the costs of our highways via fuel taxes and other fees. When you start paying 100% of your driving costs, then you demand the same from transit riders.
Mind's made up!
Don't confuse us with facts!
"We don't live in Denver."
No, but it is a starting point for comparing demographics.
"And no one here ...cares what it costs for anything in Denver." Actually, the RIO (Return on investment) ratio is useful for calculating costs.
"It's irrelevant. What may work in Denver doesn't necessarily work everywhere else."
Maybe not, but it does show what options may be adaptable here.
Regretfully, Keith and his
Regretfully, Keith and his allies prefer to constantly tear down this area, and oppose every initiative that raises us up. There has been a long list of successful projects like Town Center, the 31st Street Park and Garage, the V.B. Convention Center, the Sandler Center, the Amphitheater, the Sportsplex, and Lake Ridge (now Princess Anne Commons), among others, which have been vociferiously opposed by Keith and others, who are apparently satisfied with the services of a rural county, and nothing more. Of course, most of us don't want to live in a place like that, but until this majority stands up and quiets the vocal minority, there negativity will prevail against new initiatives that improve our city and our region.